What You Give

There was this man who needed to put an engine into his vehicle. Being his only form of transportation, he was desperate to get it done. He and his wife just had their third child and they lived out in the country. Knowing he didn’t have the proper equipment to safely do this, let alone lifting it on his own, he approached his neighbor. His neighbor laughed and said. “I’m too busy to help and the two of us cannot lift it on our own. I’m sorry.” The man being gracious thanked his neighbor and walked away with a smile on his face, determined not to be discouraged.

He made many phone calls and heard the same answer. Later that afternoon he decided to go for a walk. He passed his first neighbors house and his neighbor looked away. Still not discouraged, he continued.

On his walk he saw a vehicle parked on the side of the road and in there was a teenaged young man. He asked the young man if he needed assistance. The Teen said, “I have run out of gas and my cell phone is dead. Could you please help me?” Without hesitation, the man told the teen to come with him, as he has  5 gallons of gas at the house. When they arrived at his house, the teen saw the car and the engine. He asked the man what happened to his car and the man explained. Not another word was said. After a short bit, the teen was on his way, a big handshake and many heartfelt Thank Yous…

A several hours had passed when suddenly the man heard a noise outside his home. He went to the door and couldn’t believe what he was witnessing. There was the teen, 6 other male teens and a man. There were chains and a farm tractor. The man was in the seat of the tractor, chains around the engine for his car and the boys assisting in guiding it up. Within minutes, the engine was in the car.

The man thanked the youth several times, along with the others. He asked why he did all of this for him. The Youth looked at the man and said…”When I was parked on the side of the road, I was there for at least an hour. I can’t tell you sir how many people drove by and just continued on. You were genuinely concerned and cared enough to take the time and helped me. I am grateful for your kindness and if it wasn’t for you, I don’t know how long I would have been there. I was on the way to see my Mom who just had open heart surgery and she wasn’t doing good. I was told I needed to get there fast to say goodbye one final time. You allowed me to do that and I can’t thank you enough.”

The man stood there with tears in his eyes and couldn’t believe what he had just heard. He stood there in total amazement. Here was this young man who just lost his only mother, yet he came back without even being asked. He came back to this stranger and not alone. The engine was in the proper spot and within six (6) hours it would be road ready. It was a true Miracle.

The moral of this story should be rather clear. When a person takes a few minutes out of their busy life schedule to help another, true appreciation is shown. It may not happen back to you, as it may be passed on to another. That’s what you want is for it to pass on and not expect anything in return. You want the generosity to spread to others. It’s very contagious like a smile and these are two viruses that are always welcome. 

Love and Light

Renee 

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